Surprise
by darkangel1211
Summary: Squall finds himself in a situation he hadn't thought possible. Rated T just to be safe.


Disclaimer: Squall and Irvine belong to those fantastic people at SquareEnix - I'm merely using their universe as a spring-board for my own overactive imagination.

A/N: First story in a long while so reviews, constructive criticism welcome. We need more Squall/Irvine, so here's my contribution.

If there was one thing Squall prided himself on, it was his awareness of his surroundings. His training as a Seed was testament to that, especially during the Sorcerous War where it felt like every eye was looking over his shoulder.

So it was especially puzzling to him now that, number one, he was nowhere near as alert as he should have been upon waking and, number two, he was not alone in his room. More importantly, someone else wasn't just in his room; they were in his bed, if the way his bed slanted towards the centre was any indication with the warmth that only another person could produce. _The first point might have something to do with it_, he thought blearily, realizing through the last dredges of sleep that he had a hangover and that his memory of last night's events was hazy at best.

Which brought his mind to a screeching halt as he realized he was naked.

As much as he knew some very important decisions were going to need to be made soon, he didn't want to say or do anything he was going to regret later without at least having properly thought it through, so he turned his attention to his current predicament. He was naked, that much he knew, with a stranger in his bed. Suddenly breathing had become more difficult.

That was when the other person groaned slightly and shifted around till their front was pressed to Squall's back, a hand finding his hip, stroking slightly and a face pressed into the nape of his neck, breath warm against Squall's skin. Squall froze his body rigid, unused to the intimate touch that this other person had seemingly taken for granted. Hyne, he'd never let Rinoa get this close and they'd dated for a month before he decided it wasn't working and ended it between them.

"You need to relax, sweetheart." That voice... Only a whisper with a slight southern drawl and it still made Squall feel goosebumps.

He shut his eyes weakly, counting down the moments till the inevitable confrontation. "Irvine, what are you doing in my bed?"

A small chuckle. "I liked to believe that anyone who had me in their bed would at least remember the experience. Especially with their birthday suit on." Irvine shifted the hand from Squall's hip, taking a leisurely stroke up his side until that hand rested in the centre of his chest. Measuring his breathing, Squall realized.

Which had gone from holding in to explosive out when he felt something twitch against his buttocks. "Irvine! You're … you're naked!"

Although he couldn't see it, he felt Irvine smile against his neck. "You bet, sweetheart." The hand on his chest exerted pressure and Squall felt himself being rolled over onto his back, with Irvine looming over him at his side. Irvine smiled, a sort of half-smile, clearly trying to create some sort of ease between them. Squall noticed, distracted, that Irvine's hair was down and was draped across one shoulder. A shower of soft, red, inviting hair. He forced his attention back when he realised Irvine was still speaking to him. "I'm guessing you don't remember last night – which is a damn fine shame, I might add – so I'm going to give you a summary.

"Last night Selphie decided that she wanted to celebrate the first half of a year of peace." Irvine rolled his eyes. "Why she couldn't wait for whole year… Anyway, she roped us all into it with the addition of free beverages if we gave her a hand decorating."

Squall groaned, raising a hand to his forehead. "I remember that. Why did Zell end up wrapped in tinsel?"

Irvine shrugged. "Maybe he was trying to pull?" He settled himself down at Squall's side, making sure that the lengths of their bodies were touching. "To cut a long story short we all ended up at the party, you drank a bit too much and here we are."

"What? Wait, that doesn't explain why you're here," Squall argued. "And why we're both naked." His eyes widened. "We didn't… did we…?"

Squall felt Irvine's hand clasp under his chin, turning his face until his eyes met the other man's. "Would it be so bad if we did?"

And just like that it felt as though Squall's whole world stopped on its axis. He looked into Irvine's eyes, noticing a vulnerability he hadn't seen there before, the question left unanswered for the moment. Did Irvine actually _care_ that he'd slept with him? Apart from the fact that Squall was his superior, was there anything else that he was missing? Wait, were either of them gay? Or was this just experimenting between friends? _How the hell did I get into this mess?_ "Irvine… Give me a break okay. I woke up with a hangover, naked and in bed with one of my best friends. I'm having a little trouble here." He wiped his eyes, trying to get his vision to focus. "I don't understand any of this."

Fingers pulled his hand away from his eyes so Squall was looking at Irvine again. "Squall, you asked me for this. You looked so tired, like the weight of the war was still on your shoulders. You got drunk and when I came to check on you, you asked me for comfort. For peace." Irvine bought Squall's fingers to his mouth, gently mouthing at one of the digits, making Squall inhale sharply. "I don't know why you asked me. I didn't even know you liked men, least of all me, but there wasn't a chance in hell that I was going to pass it up. Even if it meant you'd hate me in the morning."

Irvine returned to kissing his fingers and any counteractive thought Squall had about their situation flew out the window. He didn't know if he was gay. He wasn't even sure if he was straight, the memory of his last blast up with Rinoa enough to still give him a headache, but did he deserve peace?

He didn't realize that he'd made a conscious decision before he felt Irvine's lips under his own, tongue gently exploring the soft contours of Irvine's mouth, swallowing the other man's gasp as he pushed Irvine back into the covers.

It wasn't often people surprised him, Squall reflected, but at least Irvine wouldn't regret this one.


End file.
